He was a Chicago native. His direct delivery, bluesy vocal sound, was all about that city and its blues legacy. In his own words: “I was born to sing.”
Early performances were with another Chicago native, then ever-grooving Ramsey Lewis. It was his recording of Horace Silver’s “Senor Blues” that put him on the big jazz map. There was a small television and film acting foray too. He always found the story in the song and its lyrics. Words were treated with the same reverence as the notes of the line. The resulting sound was like a blending of the way an instrument handled notes and then the way the phrasing of the breathing vocal artist delivered. Henderson’s father gets the credit for teaching the singer that singing quietly had value. You can say so much by just telling it, and singing it, like it is. These words are by the writer James Zimmerman: “… the words, harmonies, and rhythms are his media. With him every note, every word, every phrase is a brush stroke…”
Henderson sang into his 80s. He had more stories to tell.